Minister of State for Education, Suwaiba Ahmad
By Abdullahi Abubakar
The Minister of State for Education, Suwaiba Ahmad has criticised four northern stares governors of Bauchi, Katsina, Kebbi, and Kano for shutting down state-owned schools during the Ramadan fasting period.
Recall that the data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) shows that four northern states, which shut down schools for Ramadan, have some of the highest rates of out-of-school children in the country.
In view of this, the Minister of State for Education, criticized the decision of these four states, in a statement, emphasised that “nowhere is it stated that schools must be closed for fasting”.
Ahmad argued that this practice is not followed in any Muslim-majority country, and that keeping schools open during Ramadan is the standard norm, even in nations where Islam is the dominant religion.
“There is no religious basis for shutting down schools during Ramadan. Even in countries like Saudi Arabia, which are recognised as Muslim nations, educational institutions continue to function normally during this period,” Ahmad said.
She acknowledged that each state has the authority to make decisions regarding its education system but emphasised that the Federal Ministry of Education can engage with these states and present its position on the matter.
“We respect the autonomy of states in managing their education systems, but we strongly believe that closing schools for Ramadan is unnecessary and detrimental to student learning. Our role is to engage in constructive dialogue with the states and advocate for policies that prioritise education,” she said.
On Tuesday the minister, while featuring on Channels TV programme appealed to the governments of Bauchi, Katsina, Kebbi, and Kano states to reconsider their decision to shut down state-owned schools for Ramadan.
She expressed concern that the closure would lead to significant loss of learning time.
She revealed that the Federal Ministry of Education had initiated discussions with the four state governments to reopen the schools.
However, she acknowledged that the Federal Government had no direct control over state-owned institutions.
